Ok, he's not actually a kitten but he WAS frostbitten. Mr. Mittens was lost for 24 days this winter, during some of the coldest days and nights. Eventually, he showed up at AAHS, and our manager, Stacey recognized him from the "Missing Pets of Aberdeen" Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/groups/442776052427058/). Stacey contacted the possible family, who came in to take a look, resulting in a wonderful reunion!

Mittens' family recently brought him in to show us his progress. They said he
now weighs 12 lbs and is a very healthy guy. They said the only
problem he had once he was found, besides getting his health back to
normal and weight back up, was that they had to get rid of his ears due to
frost bite. They are very thankful to have gotten their Mittens back.

It's a good lesson to anyone who loses a pet, even in the worst of weather: Never give up!

Below is a picture of Mittens with his buddy, Katie:

Davidson and Gabby

Destiny F. recently sent us some pictures of her babies, Davidson (kitty) and Gabby (pup-pup). Destiny says, "They have grown to like each other. They are great with each other." Looks to me like the squirrels and birds better be on the lookout--this dynamic duo look like they mean business!

Sweetie, the sweetie : )

We received a great update from Dawn P. today. I asked her to share a few pictures, and she was nice enough to do so!

Dawn writes:

We adopted Sweetie 2 years ago
in February and just love her. She is
scared of the cows so she stays in the yard or the house and loves to
chew on shoelaces but otherwise she gets along with the 2 pugs, our 4
year old, the farm cats and my father in law's welsh corgi. Everyone that
comes to our house comments on how friendly she is. Just wanted to let
you know she's doing great! The little boy in the picture is Aidan.
Sweetie was giving him hugs and kisses before his first day of riding
the school bus!

Mr. Hunter continues to be a good sport for his little human, Emma. Good job, Hunter!!

Sasha and Harley are at it again!

From Tammy W. - Such a cute and clever Christmas letter. Thanks, Tammy!

Beautiful Little Eva

From Jess P:

Hello! My name is Jess, and I adopted Eva from the Humane Society a
couple weeks ago. I wanted to share some pics with all of you and to
thank you for letting me adopt her. I have gone through some really
though times in the past, and Eva has brought smiles to my face and
happiness and joy in my heart! I love her so much! Thank you again for
letting me adopt her. She's truly a blessing in my life. Her favorite place to be is underneath the Christmas tree!

Remembering Carly

Michelle B. sent us a picture of her sweet dog, Carly. Michelle adopted Carly from AAHS in 1999; Carly passed away Dec. 5,
2013. "She was the best dog anyone could have!" Michelle said. We hope Carly is at peace now that she's over the Rainbow Bridge. Thank you to Michelle for being her loving guardian all these years.

Nessy & Buddy!

Kendra B. writes:

We adopted our dog Nessy (a couple months) ago from AAHS. She is a wonderful addition and our other dog Nellie thinks she is the greatest thing ever. They enjoy each other’s company and play all day long. The other black lab mix, Buddy, was adopted by my parents roughly 3 years ago. He enjoys living on the farm and thinks he is a human. He lives alongside a shih tzu named Digby! A big thanks to all of the wonderful staff at AAHS and all that you do! :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanks to Val Karlen, the animals got to enjoy a taste of the holiday spirit today. She brought out some delicious ham and turkey for the furbabies! As you can see by her picture, Muffin very heartily approved of the idea. Thanks, Val!

Buddy

Little man Buddy found a wonderful furever home in Groton about a year ago. His human mama sent us a very nice note this week:

We have been truly blessed! He is not only our family dog, but he is an
awesome walking partner, foot and bed warmer (yes, he sleeps with us on
the bed!), and snuggler! He is always happy to see us, even if we are
only gone for a few minutes. Car rides are a must as is licking our
faces to wake us almost every morning. Just wanted to say THANK YOU for
finding us the perfect furbaby. Also, thank you for taking such good
care of all the animals in your care. You guys are wonderful!!!
Feeling truly blessed,
Liz D

Way to go, Buddy!

Flash!!

From Vayle W: "Thank
you to the humane society on our new addition "Flash" to our family! He
loves to snuggle, great w/the kids & when the cats don't beat him
to his bed he's great w/them too!! Thanks again! Enjoy a few pics!" Looks like kitty didn't waste any time showing Flash who's boss! And look at that contented face. It's good to be home!

Ken's - Purina Event

Our friends at Ken's Superfair Foods in Aberdeen sponsored a Purina Adoption event the weekend of Nov. 2. Ken's gave away lots of goodies and door prizes and AAHS showed off some of our wonderful animals. Mr. Carson snuggled right up to Miss Abbey W. (below). They both look pretty darn happy, don't they?

Oh, Hunter!

Look at this relaxed, happy face! Mr. Hunter now has a little girl, Emma, to call his own, along with two adult humans who love him to pieces! He has revealed himself to be an expert counter surfer, a trick that sometimes ends him up in the penalty box....but just long enough for his humans to have a good laugh where he can't see them! Emma has been busy training him, and he gets to go hunting with the whole family. He's still working on his swimming skills but he is very determined to get those ducks! Yay for Hunter, livin' the high life!

Beautiful Lady

We received a note recently from Darren and Monica P:

"9 1/2 years ago we saw our lab-mix Lady in the Aberdeen American News as
your featured pet. Her ad said “this full-figured Lady needs room to
run” and we thought we could be a good home for her. She was around 3
years old and joined our two-year old German Shorthair, Shelby, in our
home and our hearts. About 10 months after we adopted Lady we had our
first son Landon (in the picture with her), with two more boys, Carter and Jacob, to follow. She
loved our boys and they loved her for her sweet temper and patience with
them! Lady loved to play Frisbee and had her ACL repaired twice because
she was so determined to play. I’m sad to say that she had severe
arthritis because of those injuries, and suspected cancer with
significant weight loss over the last few months, and we had to put her
down (recently). She was the perfect fit for our family and we wanted to
thank you for bringing her into our lives. While we are still grieving
her loss, we wouldn’t have changed a thing
about her time with us!"

Sweet, shy Lucy

Lucy is one of the shyest dogs we've ever had at AAHS. Her new humans were so patient with her, visiting her often before adopting her, and they are still being patient and kind with her. She even has 2 new friends, and is coming out of her shell!

A note from Katelyn D: "Lucy and her two new BFFs. Making progress and getting into lots of mischief!"

Thanks to Lucy's new humans for giving her a chance at a new, happy life!

Chloe Update!

Chloe's mom, Beth, sent us an update from this summer:

"Chloe
and 'the puppies' all went into the same kennel! Then, Lucy (the young
cat) decided to 'monitor' them! This was from early July - thought you
might want to see her!"

Kennel roof

We recently added some comfort for the dogs: a roof over the north side outdoor kennels! This will provide shade in the summer and shelter from snow and rain. The roof was made possible through a very generous donation from the Richard W. Martsfield Estate. Mr. Martsfield asked that his donation go toward something specific for the dogs. We hope we've honored his request in a way that would please him. All the puppydogs have given it two non-opposable thumbs up!

Bodhi

Bodhi is making his new human, Paulette, very happy and vice versa! Paulette says Bodhi (formerly Bo) is a very good boy, and he is being spoiled already--just this week, he got his very own package in the mail. He was so excited to find treats and a brand new cover for his favorite chair inside! Way to hit the mother lode, Bodhi!

Duke

Duke the handsome German Wirehaired Pointer stopped by this week with his humans. They said he's doing great and they wouldn't trade him for the world. We're so glad you're happy, Duke!

Wookie

We received a letter from Wookie recently:

Hi!
My name is Wookie. I am a Chihuahua that was adopted a few days before
the 4th of July this year. I just wanted to write and say THANK YOU!!!
Thank you for housing me while I found my adopted family. They are
great!

I
had a little trouble adjusting right away, so I stayed close to mom. I have two friends, Dodger
the Dog, and Snickers the Cat. Snickers is still a little scared of me,
so I usually just leave her alone. Dodger is only a year old and he is a
big boxer, but I told him that I will rule the house, and he's okay
with that. He and I play a lot, and sometimes we play too rough and get
in trouble!

Mom
is really good to me; I get to sleep with her- I like to sleep under
the covers and she always laughs when I do that! It took me a while to
figure out what kind of food I liked, but mom bought this new stuff and I
love it! But Dodger likes to eat it.

Dad
is awesome! He occasionally feeds me steak when mom isn't looking....it
is so good. And Dodger and I get to go on runs in the fields, and take
rides on the golf cart.

My
brother Sam and sister Delilah are very good to me also. they help take
me out to go potty and poopy while mom and dad are at work, and play
with me all the time. They bought me treats and mini tennis balls!

Overall,
I love my new family and my new family loves me! This family is a
keeper! Thanks again for keeping me safe until they found me!

Wookie Goulding

Elsa

Elsa's human, Annie, shared a picture of her lounging in the pool with her best buds:

Slinky

Oh my goodness, is there anything more peaceful than snuggling, sleeping kitties?? Slinky (on the left) has only been in her new home for a few weeks, and she's already found a few friend.

A note from her new humans: "Here is a picture of Slinky. Baxter is our stray on the right.
He loves Slinky when he is home! Thanks for all you do. -Terry and Joe P."

Sylvester aka Max

Sylvester--formerly known as Max--enjoys a nap with one of his new humans. Congrats on your furever home, Sylvester!

Another great update from best buds Sasha and Harley

Cash, Taz, and Their Buddy, Roo

"Love
your page! Even though its been over a year since my sister and i
adopted our pets from AAHS, I Thought I would update you guys on pappy
(Taz) and Cash! The pictures attatched are of my sister, Paige, Cash,
& her other rescue dog, Roo. The other picture is of Taz in the boat!
His new favorite hobby is fishin'! Besides napping, of course! Thank you for helping us find our forever pets!" - Chelsi P

How cute is this??!

Our beautiful little boy, Oreo, has fallen in love with a beautiful little girl named Elizabeth (daughter of Bruce and Caroline.) As you can see, the feeling is mututal! A happy ending for a wonderful dog!

Gunther, happy in his new home!

Adorable little Gunther finally got a new home, and his human mama sent us a picture and a note:

"About
two weeks ago we adopted Gunther from you. I just thought I would let
you know things are going really well with him. He is a fantastic little
dog, very intelligent and loves people! I’ve attached a photo of him.
He has really settled in well, and we have already taught him a few new
things. Thank you so much for all that you do for the animals." -Shari T

Donatello "Donnie" sent us her publicity photo.

From Donnie's human mom, Lynn D:

"I have attached a picture of my beautiful
Donatella (formerly known as “Molly” at AAHS), happy and healthy in her
fur-ever home. As you can see, Donnie is so happy she is singing in her
microphone and is planning on auditioning for American Idol!" Haha, thanks for the picture, Donnie!

May 2013 Volunteer of the Month

Sydney is our Volunteer of the Month for May 2013. She has put in a
total of 50 hours in the month. She helps us with all of our daily
needs of the animals and is never afraid to jump in and help whenever
she can. We love having Sydney here helping us and the animals!

Stitch, a former staff favorite, stopped by the shelter for a visit recently. He sniffed around his old stompin' grounds, said hello the staff, and then was very eaget to leave with his humans. Nice to see you Stitch!

Sasha and Harley

Sasha and Harley's new humans sent us a note to let us know how they're doing in their new home. They are living the high life. Yay for them!

A visit from Duke the German Shepherd

One of our alumni, Duke, stopped by for a visit recently. He has put on weight, and looks healthy and happy! His new owner said he is a wonderful dog, and he couln't ask for anything better. Congrats, Duke and dad!

Chloe alert!!!

Chloe's new mom posted a couple of pictures of her on our Facebook page. She looks very happy with her new siblings (who, their mom pointed out, just had fun running through the creek!!) She has a huge backyard now--LOTS of room to stretch those long legs!

Some of the folks at Aspire made these cool paracord cat collars for the AAHS kitties! Pictured here are Ashley Kitzman and Michelle Ludwig. Thanks, ladies!

One of our former sweeties, Sandy (now called Tanner) is training as a search and rescue dog at the South Dakota Canine Center in the Black Hills! Her trainers sent us some pictures of her new life. Very exciting, and she looks really happy!

The wonderful folks at Home Federal made a great donation to AAHS recently. Miss Laila paid them a visit to thank them "paws"onally. The Home Federal staff was kind enough to pose with a picture, along with the AAHS staff.

Sugar stopped in for a visit recently. Thanks for stopping by to say "woof!", Sugar!

Cody (formerly Dually) stopped by recently with his new human dad. Thanks for visiting us, Cody!

Cleo stopped by for a visit this week too. Doesn't she look happy with her new human family?

Sweet boy Koda also visited recently, along with his new humans and his new doggie sidekick!